The war in Syria is growing increasingly worse every day, and it is affecting every Syrian citizen, regardless of ethnicity or religion. But just like in every war, the situation for minorites is even more horrifying. The Christian minority in Syria has no militia and is targeted by everyone. Christian Assyrians/Syriacs and others have become the number one targets for criminals and terrorists. Nuri Kino, journalist and author, has met and interviewed close to a hundred Christian Syrian refugees. He gives voice to this otherwise silent minority in a personal report. He is told harrowing tales of systematic rape and kidnappings. Many, perhaps most of the refugees interviewed express a desire to to leave the Middle East for good and have gotten in touch with human smugglers. A multi-million enterprise has sprung up around the refugee crisis. Kino has also spoken to several of these smugglers and investigated the trade. His first-hand report includes an interview with a young man who reached Sweden after a hellish journey from Syria. ”Jacob” was forced into a sealed container and almost died of suffocation. Only a few days after leaving the container he and some seventy other men were forced onto a ship, where only half of them survived the journey.

Nuri Kino's first-hand report is a must-read for anyone who is involved or interested in issues of migration and international politics.

The Tur Abdin Timeline - A timeline of Tur Abdin (Syriac for "the Mountain of the Servants [of God]"), the heartland of the Syriac Orthodox Christians, a hilly region located in upper Mesopotamia, between the Tigris and Euphrates.